The stations, Ice TV, Thunder TV and TV XYZ were reported to the Commission and the Information Ministry by two broadcasters James Oberko and Tommy Annan Forson for airing pornographic movies on free-to-air television.

[contextly_sidebar id=”4M3VGWSud1d03PYOhYLc3qhKfM5enCcx”] The complainants were asking the National Media Commission to intervene to stop that act which they said was inappropriate.

The Chairman of the National Media Commission (NMC), Kwasi Gyan Apenteng, in a statement sighted by citifmonline.com said it has settled the complaints and has since directed the indicted stations to cease airing the pornographic materials.

“The National Media Commission has directed television stations XYZ TV, Thunder TV and Ice TV to cease forthwith the airing of pornographic materials on their television stations. The directive follows a complaint filed by Mr. James Oberko and Mr. Tommy Annan Forson against the stations,” the statement added.

The statement further noted that, “the Commission examined the broadcast of the three stations and concluded that the content complained about did not meet the standards of decency required by the Broadcasting Standards of the Commission.”

It added that the NMC found that the stations air materials that show “actual sexual intercourse between humans,” a development that flouts the NMC broadcasting guidelines.

“Section 7 (e) of the NMC Broadcasting Guidelines provides that “Actual sexual intercourse between humans should at no time be transmitted.”

The Commission said this provision does not admit of any “exceptions.”

Following the complaint, some of the indicted channels called the bluff of the complainants and the regulatory body, claiming their actions were within the remit of the law and were not ready to back down.

But according to the NMC’s statement, the three stations have apologized for their actions and have committed themselves to ceasing broadcast of pornographic movies.

“At the settlement meeting, the three stations apologised and committed themselves to ensuring that there would be no more pornography on their stations. They, however, drew the attention of the Commission to other radio and television stations which they considered to be carrying similarly offensive content. The Commission has cautioned broadcasting stations and other electronic communications networks to be particularly mindful of the implications of carrying any content which offends public sensibilities.”

–

By: Jonas Nyabor/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Stop showing porn – NMC orders TV XYZ, others appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The two, on Monday, 12th June, 2017, presented their complaint to the National Media Commission and the Ministry of Information against TV XYZ, Ice TV and Thunder TV, for showing these films to their audience.

According to them, it is against the broadcasting standards for television stations to show porn materials irrespective of what time they are shown.

“We have realized that these TV stations are showing things that are against the media commission’s standards and as concerned citizens, we thought it wise to make a complaint to the right authorities, to prompt them to take the necessary actions,” James told Citifmonline.com.

They presented to the Executive Secretary of the National Media Commission, George Sarpong, an album of compiled photos taken from porn scenes shown across the television stations in question.

Presenting the complaint, Tommy Annan-Forson said: “these things have been going on for quite a while. It started on social media and people started asking questions as to why some television stations would show porn. Some years ago, Cable Gold was doing same, I captured it, reported to the media commission and they stopped them.”

Tommy Annan-Forson

In his response, Mr. George Sarpong congratulated James and Tommy for taking such a bold step in the interest of Ghana and assured them of their support.

“I want to thank you for the effort that you put into this and I hope that we will get back to you. In fact, this gesture shows there is a lot of hope for the media landscape,” he stated.

After that, they also sent a copy of the complaint to the Minister of Information, Mustapha Hamid, who also lauded their move.

Mustapha Hamid & James Oberko

Messrs Oberko and Annan-Forson told Citifmonline.com that they would later serve the National Communications Authority, the Chief Justice and Speaker of Parliament copies of their complaints.

Tommy Annan Forson is a doyen of broadcasting with over 40 years experience. He has through his radio school, RABODEF, trained a lot of successful broadcasters in Ghana.

James Oberko is also broadcaster of more than 10 years experience, who is currently an administrator at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology.

–

By: Kwame Dadzie/citifmonline.com/Ghana

The post Broadcasters petition NMC over ‘Porn-showing’ TV stations appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

The committee, chaired by Prof. Dora Edu-Buandoh, the Provost of the College of Humanities and Legal Studies, University of Cape Coast (UCC), is to serve a two-year term with the mandate to help settle complaints by and or against the media.

They would also address all issues related to the media in the region.

The members of the committee include Mrs. Alice Tettey, the Regional Chairperson of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Mrs. Doris Ashun, an Educationist and Women’s advocate, and Mr. Anthony Vincent Ananse, a language expert.

Others are Mr. Isaac Oscar Odoom, an Economist, author and lay preacher; Mr. John K. A. Simpson, a Former Headmaster of Mfantsipim School, Mr. Joseph Connel of St. Augustine’s College and Mr. Ato Duncan, Chairman of the Regional Civil Society Coalition.

The Central Region’s Committee brings to five the number of such bodies following those inaugurated in the Ashanti, Northern, Upper East and Volta regions.

Mr Kwasi Gyan-Apenteng, the Chairman of the NMC, inaugurating the committee, said it was its responsibility to ensure that the media lived up to its crucial role and responsibilities to ensure peace before, during and after the elections.

The inauguration, he said, therefore, came at a time the Commission needed to re-focus its energies on its core mandates, especially as the 2016 General Election drew closer.

He said the NMC was hopeful that the media would rise to the occasion and help confirm to the world that Ghana’s democracy had matured.

Speaking on the Content Standard Authorisation Law being challenged by the Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association (GIBA) at the Supreme Court, Mr Gyan-Apenteng expressed optimism that the judgement would clear the path for its implementation.

He said the Court case had even created much awareness on the law and helped modify behaviour and strengthened the creation as well as dissemination of content.

“The media should to be alive to their call to exercise freedom with responsibility and abide by the rules and regulations of media practice and make conscious efforts to follow the ethical precepts in the election period,” he said.

“We live in a country whose media is largely free to publish what they want without let or hindrance. We cannot take this freedom for granted and we cannot allow it to be abused”.

Mr Gyan-Apenteng, therefore, called for support for the Committee.

Mr. Simpson, who served as the interim chairman, expressed gratitude to the NMC for the confidence reposed in them and pledged on behalf of the other members to work assiduously to achieve their objectives.

STAR-Ghana sponsored the NMC for the inauguration.

–

Source: GNA

The post NMC inaugurates Media Advisory Committee for Central Region appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

This, he advised, should not be in the media and said doing that, would not be helpful to the nation’s justice delivery system.

Addressing a two-day training workshop organized for journalists in Kumasi, he asked that such complaints should also be written and must not be oral.

The programme was held under the theme “Responsible and objective court reporting before, during and after election 2016: the media and the law”.

It was organized by the Communication Department of the Judicial Service in partnership with the Judicial Training Institute (JTI) with support from the Danish International Development Agency (DANIDA).

The goal was to aid them to have a better understanding of legal terminologies, court room etiquette, contempt of court and the role of the public complaints unit in effective justice delivery.

Justice Adjei, touched on contempt of court and said this was meant to protect the sanctity of the court and not for the fun of punishing anybody.

He said the court must not be brought into disrepute so that the rule of law would be preserved, he added.
Justice Samuel Boakye-Yiadom, a Justice of the High Court, repeated the assurance of speedy trial of all electoral cases.

He said in line with the directive by the Chief Justice, these would take precedence over all other cases.

Nana Kwasi Gyan-Apenteng, Chairman of the National Media Commission (NMC) advised journalists to report accurately on court proceedings.

He emphasized the need for them to uphold high standards of professionalism and avoid doing anything unethical.

–

Source: GNA

The post Complaints against judges must not be made in the media appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.

Nana Gyan-Appenteng was speaking at the opening of a two-day training for court reporters held on the theme: “Responsible and Objective Court Reporting before, during and after the election: The Media and the Law.”

The training is to update and equip journalists, particularly those on court beats with relevant information to enhance their work.

He said professional ethical journalism is an indispensable tool for judicial independence and accountability.

Nana Gyan-Appentang, who spoke on the topic: “Press Freedom and Responsibility: Is the media a threat to Judicial Independence?”, said the administration of justice was more important than journalists getting their scoop.

He urged journalists and media practitioners to cross check all information, get their ‘vitals’ right and understand the court cases thoroughly before reporting.

The NMC Chairman said journalists should also show compassion, restraint and have human understanding regarding cases they report on.

He said the media has a role to advocate access to justice and legal schemes for the poor.

“It’s also for the media to highlight the barriers to justice and suggest alternatives models and scenarios,” he said.

Nana Gyan-Appenteng said some of the barriers to justice include political, financial, cultural, linguistic, gender-specific, logistics and geographic.

Justice J.C. Amonoo-Monney, a retired Justice of the Court of Appeal, called on court reporters to equip themselves with relevant legal documents to enrich their stories.

He urged journalists and media houses to use the correct legal expressions of terms used in trials to educate their audiences.

“Courts at the end of trials do not give ruling but rather they give judgment,” he said.

He said most journalists changed the court terminologies, which did not bring the right meaning in the story.

Mrs Grace Tagoe, the Director of Communication of the Judicial Service, said the Service duly acknowledged the media’s effort in bring accurate, balanced and fair information to the public.

She said there was no denying the critical role the media played in complementing the work of the judiciary in justice delivery.

The journalists were taken through topics like legal terminologies and courtroom etiquette, what constitutes contempt of court, types in relations to the media, court processes and procedures in criminal and civil cases and effective court reporting with emphasis on election petition reportage.

They were also exposed to improving access to justice: the role of the media as a partner, press freedom and responsible journalism: Is the media a threat to judicial independence and the role of the public complaint unit in effective justice delivery.

–

Source: GNA

The post Irresponsible media threatens judicial independence – NMC appeared first on Citi 97.3 FM - Relevant Radio. Always.